1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to detection devices, electronic apparatuses, and robots.
2. Related Art
The detection devices disclosed in JP-A-60-135834 and JP-A-7-128163 are known as detection devices that detect an external force. The application of such detection devices in tactile sensors for touch panels, robots, and so on is under consideration.
The detection device disclosed in JP-A-60-135834 is configured using a pressure receiving sheet on the rear surface of which cone-shaped protrusions are disposed in an essentially uniform manner, and pressure distributions are detected from the amounts by which the protrusions deform. However, the detection device disclosed in JP-A-60-135834 cannot measure forces acting in directions within the plane due to pressure applied to the measurement surface (that is, cannot measure sliding forces).
Meanwhile, the detection device disclosed in JP-A-7-128163 is configured with a plurality of column-shaped protrusions disposed in a matrix on the front surface of a pressure receiving sheet, with conical protrusions provided in the rear surface in areas that equally divide the peripheral areas of the front surface protrusions. Although the detection device disclosed in JP-A-7-128163 does enable an external pressure to be detected as a three-dimensional force vector, the detection limit for external pressure is defined by the degree to which the protrusions deform.
As described above, neither the detection device according to JP-A-60-135834 nor the detection device according to JP-A-7-128163 is capable of detecting the direction and intensity of an external pressure with high precision.